Online game "Once Human"

This MMO game about survival after the end of the world aroused the interest of the public from the moment of its announcement. Because instead of usual zombies and monsters from other planets here as opponents are objects and mutants modified by space infection, and the project was published by the Chinese company NetEase, familiar to gamers of all countries. Trailers showed something youthful - with brightly colored outfits of heroes, songs and plenty of action. In addition, the release is free: nothing prevents you from installing the client on your computer, at least for a trial. How not to be tempted? So we decided to tell you why Once Human is remarkable.

Immediately after installing the game on your computer, one of the most difficult quests awaits you. No, you don't need to create additional accounts or dig into the settings for a long time. But finding a free server with sufficient connection quality is a challenge. In principle, there are many servers in Once Human, in addition, they are grouped by region (there are Europe, Korea, Japan, North and South America, Southeast Asia, Macau and Taiwan), but since we are talking about a popular novelty, most of the worlds are populated to failure - even if the description indicates the coveted Low, no one guarantees the result. So you should be patient and try different options until you get lucky.

By solving this task, you can familiarize yourself with the game's world and its backstory. The catastrophe on our planet happened 20 years ago - when a substance called Stardust changed the Earth beyond recognition and caused the fusion of local life forms with foreign ones. Most humans died out under the onslaught of the monsters. But scientists in secret laboratories continued to work - they called the mutations "deviations" (deviations) and began to study them to find a way to enhance humans at the expense of anomalies and at the same time protect them from the devastating effects of Stardust. In one of the closed research complexes "Rosetta" and comes to your hero. You can customize his appearance in the editor, but there is no choice of class or any characteristics.

On the spot we find out that there was an emergency situation in "Rosetta": all the mutants broke free, and then killed the guards and scientists. Weird Bird V explains that our hero is a meta-human who was kept in a cell to study the effects of abnormalities on the body. And the hero did well, so the future of all humans on Earth depends on him (or her). Using the power of Stardust, it is necessary to clean the planet from monsters and revive civilization, acting at the same time with other meta-humans under the control of gamers. However, not all characters are controlled by the players - already in Rosetta we are introduced to the important for the story subject Mitsuko, who has a butterfly growing out of her eye. In fact, there are many such oddities in Once Human's design.

The style of the game shows that the developers respect both the series Stranger Things, released on Netflix, and the game Control from the Finnish studio Remedy Entertainment. The appearance of the monsters is difficult to describe. Sometimes there are ordinary hulks of muscles, and sometimes they attack outlandish creatures with human bodies and searchlights instead of heads, or giants, covered with wires and poles with satellite dishes. However, this riot of imagination does not provide the enemies with a difference in behavior - once they see the victim, they just rush forward, who is slower and who is faster. And to cope with their attacks helps everything that is at hand - from machete and crossbow to revolver and sniper rifle. The hero's tactical arsenal also includes slasher-like rolls.

After learning the basics of the combat system in the opening mission, we find out that there is a lot of loot in the game, including food, water, medicines, stimulants, building materials, equipment items and weapons. The Vee bird takes the hero to the open world, which we view from above, as if at the start of a match in PUBG or Fortnite. The comparison is given for a reason: during the flight you have to choose in advance the place you intend to inhabit in the future. But it's not so easy to do that, because everywhere you turn, it's already occupied. People who came to the server before others, naturally want to take the most picturesque places - on the ocean shore, on top of a mountain or on the edge of a forest near a lake. So the principle here is this: either take what you are given, or change servers in the hope that you will be lucky.

The further process is based on the fact that you have a base, where you rest, build something, assemble on the workbench or repair, and also pump up the hero, and there is an open world - in its unexplored nooks and crannies you have to make forays. Sometimes you go on a journey on a mission, sometimes in search of resources, and even just out of curiosity, because the map is full of activities and points of interest. Cleaning up the territories comes down to the fact that you must first kill ordinary monsters, then go to the main monster and kill him, freeing the area from contagion. The more difficult the challenge, the more interesting prizes for success. Nobody forces you to walk on your own - in time you will be given transportation, such as a motorcycle. Teleportation between key points on the map is also a handy thing.

Although the game was originally presented as a survival action movie, the conditions here are very gentle. From time to time the character needs to eat, but even more often he needs to drink, especially if he is constantly running around the locations and jumping over fences. On the other hand, on the base, the needs are minimized. You can do without water and food for as long as you like in your possessions, while building or crafting. However, without materials, there is nothing to think about the former or the latter. That's why one of the main tasks is gathering resources: the hero chops trees, chisels rocks, hunts animals for hides and meat, and searches every crate for junk to recycle. Copper extracted from the rock is smelted into ingots - you will need a lot of them.

From wood in the stove we get coal, meat is roasted on the grill, processed in a special machine junk gives parts for the assembly of weapons and ammunition for it, as well as armor, boots, gloves, helmets and other tactical jewelry. The arsenal is constantly updated by assembling guns from blueprints found during raids. Each gun can be improved at the workbench if you have enough resources, and on top of that you are allowed to decorate it in a thousand and one ways. Most of the cosmetic items in the game are sold for money, but the developers have to make money somehow, right? At least there are no combat upgrades in the store - everyone is equal in battle. To be more precise, everything depends on the character's level, the quality of his equipment and personal skills of the gamer. And you will have to fight in Once Human a lot and often - be ready for it.

Wherever you go, at any point of interest there will be opponents, even the most trifling ones like spiders. You should approach the battle wisely, because the number of bullets is always limited: if you have fired all of them, make new ones on the workbench or look for boxes with ammunition on the location. But the crossbow arrow can be taken out of the defeated enemy - it will not go anywhere. Magic abilities will also come in handy, because we are playing as a meta-human. Telekinesis allows you to throw objects at mutants. Or give free rein to your inner deviations - send butterflies at the monsters, summon a minion, which you managed to tame. All means are good here. And don't forget about treatment: in the quick access panel there are medicines for both body and soul, if the hero panics.

The game's progression is divided into two parts: one where you improve your character's abilities, and the other where you expand his building and crafting capabilities. It's not enough to find a blueprint of a rifle on the map - you have to know how to make it. The same goes for upgrading your base. You can just sit on a site under the open sky, from which the rain is pouring, or scorching sun, and you can build a mansion, furnished no worse than the house in the last part of The Sims. Progression is based on gaining experience points - you get them for anything, from cutting down trees or skinning deer to slaughtering territory bosses. Upgrading equipment, in turn, requires resources. But they are not enough for everything, so you should choose your favorite weapon and continue to improve it.

The story about multiplayer should start with the fact that the servers in Once Human are divided into two types: one with a focus on PvE (they are recommended for beginners), and others offer PvP battles. That is, in the starting world, where you perform quests, explore locations and start to build a base, you will not be able to attack your neighbor. But you can easily make friends with him - to get acquainted you just need to approach someone's property and activate one of the flowers growing around the perimeter, after which a dialog box will open. During your outings you will meet other heroes. Some of them will help you in a fight, and some of them will be helped by you. You can do it at will and at any moment, just like in Destiny. Some of them will help you create a four-man squad or even a clan.

The coolest challenge on servers of the first type is a joint outing against the world boss. Nothing prevents you from participating in regular events, inviting your friends along. But as soon as you feel that you are ready for serious challenges, you can change the world to one where free PvP battles are allowed. And where there's PvP, there's competition. Players fight over disputed territories - in such matches, it's every man for himself. You should also take care of the security of your base: if you bite with other server inhabitants for an echo stone and take the loot to your house, it will immediately become a target for greedy neighbors. So you'll need stronger walls, turrets and other methods of protecting your personal possessions. Of course, in modes where you compete with other gamers, you can get the most valuable items.

Once Human is a typical for Chinese developers mix of everything at once. Here you'll find survival with setting up your own estate, looter-shooter elements with collecting all sorts of loot, character upgrading, gacha mechanics with opening new assistants, battles with huge bosses, and a choice of modes. At the same time, there is such a variety in the design style, that some people may not like this approach of artists. But the graphics in the game is nice, the entourage is very unusual, and the battles are interesting enough to get stuck in the virtual world for an evening or two. And they offer everything for free - it makes sense to try it. And if the developers fulfill their promise and add Russian language support, it will be great.

Zarium. August 2024